Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - Ghana is to receive 480
million Canadian dollars annually in budgetary
support for being selected among the few countries
that Canada has decided to focus its development
assistance.
Canada has resolved to limit its overseas
development assistance to 25 countries worldwide.
This came to light during the landmark bilateral
talks between President John Agyekum Kufuor and the
Canadian Governor-General, Ms Michaelle Jean at the
Castle, Osu, on Tuesday.
She is in the country for a five-day official State
visit and this is the first time ever that Ghana is
playing host to a Governor-General of Canada.
Canada has been providing development support for
Ghana since 1957 with its total assistance between
2000 and 2005 coming up to 1,572 billion cedis.
Ms Jean said her country was proud and determined to
serve as a useful ally of Ghana in its
socio-economic and political development efforts.
"Ghana is the hope for Africa. We see Ghana heading
in the right direction, in the areas of education,
the Judiciary, the fight against corruption,
democracy and human rights,” she said.
"We see very promising things. We are not here with
arrogance but good reciprocity. There are
fundamental values that Canada shares with Ghana."
The Governor-General spoke of Canada's readiness to
help in the skills training of Ghanaians, saying;
"we really want to be part of the new
entrepreneurship of Ghana".
She said they would, therefore, want to hear more
about the challenges facing the country and how they
could come in to help the nation overcome those
challenges.
President Kufuor said Ghana was grateful to Canada
for its display of genuine friendship, citing its
assistance in the areas of technical education,
electoral practice and in the agricultural sector,
among other things.
Additionally, it has cancelled the debt owed her by
Ghana.
Canada, he said, had since Ghana's independence
stood by her and never looked back, not even during
the trying period of political instability, economic
mismanagement and bad governance.
President Kufuor noted that the Canadian
International Development Agency (CIDA), for
example, had been the longest running programme in
the country.
He said the two countries had related very well at
the Commonwealth and co-operated in peacekeeping
adding that the Governor General's visit was,
therefore, a crowning point of the relations.
GNA
